Trouble lamps, or drop lights as they are often called, are commonly used to provide light on a temporary basis to a place where light is not always needed. For example, automobile mechanics commonly use these kinds of lamps to direct the light to that portion of a vehicle upon which they are working.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,561,554 to Little shows a magnetic attachment to a trouble lamp so that the trouble lamp can be held against a metallic surface, such as a car. A problem with this early magnetic attachment is that the light cannot be easily adjusted to direct the light where needed.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,603,171 to Wade shows an electro-magnetic structure attached to a trouble light. This apparatus also lacks the ability to easily and quickly adjust the direction of the light from the trouble lamp. U.S. Pat. No. 1,932,143 to Piercy shows a clamp with threaded fasteners for attachment to a trouble lamp. While the direction of the light from the trouble lamp can be adjusted, threaded fasteners must be used to attach the apparatus to a trouble lamp and, of course, these fasteners must be removed if it is desired to use the magnet attachment on a different trouble lamp.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,019,047 to Frey is similar to the aforementioned Little patent because it has a magnet, but the trouble light cannot be easily adjusted to direct the light in a particular direction with the Frey structure.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,727,462 to Komonko shows a trouble light with a magnet for attachment to the shield or reflector of an incandescent trouble light. This structure cannot, however, be used on florescent trouble lights, so there is a need for a more universal device of this type which can be used on both incandescent and florescent trouble lamps.